Friday, December 10, 2010

THE AMERICAN DREAM IS NOT FOR THE ONLY REAL AMERICANS

Why am I not surprised?

From the Rapid City Journal.

Ziebach County still poorest in America

Ziebach County on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation in northwest South Dakota retained its infamous title as the poorest county in America in 2009, according to a new Census Bureau report released this week.

Poverty rates for counties and school districts throughout the United States were part of the Census Bureau's Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. In Ziebach County, 62 percent of its 2,552 residents live in poverty. The rate of children younger than 18 in the county was even higher -- 76.7 percent. In the Midwest region, the seven poorest counties are in South Dakota, and two others -- Bennett and Dewey counties -- also made the list of the 30 Midwest counties with the highest poverty rates.

"It's a pretty harsh thing to have to digest," Julie Garreau, director of the Cheyenne River Youth Project in Eagle Butte, said of Ziebach's dubious distinction. "I suppose you could let those figures get you down, but there's a difference between being impoverished and being poor. We're rich in so many ways. There are some beautiful things here -- the land, the family, kids -- and that's what we focus on."

About half of the population of the Cheyenne River reservation is younger than 18, so many of those underprivileged children come through her doors every day. "Statistics: For me, there's always a face attached to it, and I know that little face has a personality, and a heart and a great smile." Poverty has a personal focus for Garreau and her staff, so the approach to it is optimistic, she said. "We know the people involved. ... Some of the statistics are relatives -- our nieces, nephews, cousins and grandkids."

A Colorado county was the second poorest in the U.S., but Shannon County on South Dakota's Pine Ridge Indian Reservation was third on the list, where more than 51 percent of all people live below the poverty level, along with 57 percent of children under 18. Other South Dakota counties with child poverty rates well above the national average of 18.2 percent were Todd County (57 percent); Jackson County (52 .7 percent); Mellette County (52.7 percent); Corson County (52.6 percent); and Buffalo County (51.5 percent).

Garrreau said it was unacceptable for the rest of South Dakota to dismiss the poverty rates of seven counties in western South Dakota as a "reservation" problem.

"South Dakota has to look at it and say, ‘These are our children -- they're American Indian children, yes, but they are (ital)our (end ital) children, too," she said. "We're South Dakota citizens. We live on a reservation, and we have our tribal government, but the reality is that those are South Dakota kids."

"What I suggest to people when they see those statistics is, before passing judgment, try to remember that there are good people who live here," she said.

By contrast, Lincoln County, south of Sioux Falls, had the second lowest poverty rate in the U.S. for children younger than 18, at 5.4 percent. Lincoln, rated ninth, was the only South Dakota county in the top 10 U.S. counties with the overall lowest levels of poverty.

In Pennington County, 14.1 percent of county residents live in poverty, and more than 20 percent of children younger than18 do. Median household income in Pennington County was $46,972 in 2009, compared to about $25,000 in Ziebach and almost $73,000 in Lincoln County.

The report showed that nationwide, 14.4 percent, or 453 of 3,142 counties in the U.S., experienced a significant increase in poverty from 2007 to 2009. Only 38 U.S. counties had a significant decrease in poverty in that time.

Poverty thresholds for 2009 vary according to the number and the relationship of people in a household, but typically are set at $11,161 per year for one person and $21,954 for a four-person household. Non-cash public benefits, including food supplements and housing subsidies, are not counted as income under poverty formulas.

Contact Mary Garrigan at 394-8424 or mary.garrigan@rapidcityjournal.com

LET'S DANCE...ON THEIR GRAVE

Here is a party you will want to miss.

From www.southernstudies.org

The Secession Ball's revisionist history

On Dec. 20, the group Sons of Confederate Veterans is holding a $100-per-person"Secession Gala" in Charleston, S.C. to celebrate the state's signing 150 years ago of the Ordinance of Secession -- the document whereby slave-holding states that would eventually form the Confederacy abandoned the Union and sparked the Civil War.

The NAACP plans to protest the ball, which is part of a series of events that heritage groups are holding to commemorate the war's sesquicentennial. NAACP South Carolina chapter President Lonnie Randolph likened the ball to celebrating the Holocaust:

"You couldn't pay the folks in Charleston to hold a Holocaust gala, could you? But you know these are nothing but black people, so nobody pays them any attention."

Organizer Jeff Antley, a member of SCV and Confederate Heritage Trust, bristles at the comparison:

"It has nothing to do with slavery as far as I'm concerned," he said. "What I'm doing is honoring the men from this state who stood up for their self-government and their rights under law -- the right to secede was understood."

But Antley's claim that secession had "nothing to do with slavery" belies either ignorance or denial of historic facts.

It's true that the Ordinance of Secession -- the original copy of which (pictured above) will be on display at the gala -- doesn't mention slavery. But the brief document doesn't mention anyreason for the decision to dissolve the Union, stating only that a convention of the people of South Carolina gathered in Charleston on Dec. 20, 1860 and voted to repeal the state's ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

For what was behind the decision, we have to turn to a document the same convention drew up and signed four days later titled "Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina From the Federal Union."

Slavery is its major theme.

The declaration opens by tracing the history of how South Carolina came to ratify the U.S. Constitution and notes that "in every compact between two or more parties, the obligation is mutual; that the failure of one of the contracting parties to perform a material part of the agreement entirely releases the obligation of the other."

Fourteen states, the declaration charges, "have deliberately refused, for years, to fulfill their constitutional obligations" -- specifically, the runaway-slave section of the Constitution's Article IV, which was superseded in 1865 by the 13th Amendment. That section says:

"No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up, on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due."

Pointing out that the Northern states had enacted laws "which either nullify the Acts of Congress or render useless any attempt to execute them," the declaration charges that the compact has been broken and "South Carolina is released from her obligation." It continues:

"We affirm that these ends for which this Government was instituted have been defeated, and the Government itself has been made destructive of them by the action of the non-slaveholding States. Those States have assumed the right of deciding upon the propriety of our domestic institutions; and have denied the rights of property established in fifteen of the States and recognized by the Constitution; they have denounced as sinful the institution of slavery; they have permitted open establishment among them of societies, whose avowed object is to disturb the peace and to eloigning the property of the citizens of other States. They have encouraged and assisted thousands of our slaves to leave their homes; and those who remain, have been incited by emissaries, books and pictures to servile insurrection."

Observing that the North elected as President a man "whose opinions and purposes are hostile to slavery," the declaration says that

"submersion of the Constitution ... has been aided in some of the States by elevating to citizenship, persons who, by the supreme law of the land, are incapable of becoming citizens; and their votes have been used to inaugurate a new policy, hostile to the South, and destructive of its beliefs and safety."

As the historic record shows, South Carolina's secession had everything to do with slavery. That SCV would deny this shows the group is unwilling or unable to honor the full truth of theirlost cause.

By Sue Sturgis on December 6, 2010 10:40 AM

Thursday, December 09, 2010

NATURE STRIKES BACK

Arrogant humans ignore reality, sharks attack, swimmers pay the price...

From The Guardian.

Sharm el-Sheikh: scientists give initial findings on shark attacks

Egyptian shark attacks blamed on overfishing, illegal waste and irresponsible tourists

Jack Shenker in Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 9 December 2010 16.10 GMT

Shark attack Sharm el-Sheikh — Tourists pass a sign warning of the dangers of swimming in deep waters on a beach at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Photograph: Khaled El Fiqi/EPA

A deadly combination of overfishing, illegal waste dumping and irresponsible tourist behaviour was responsible for triggering Egypt's recent shark attacks, according to the preliminary findings of scientists investigating the tourism disaster.

In the first official pronouncement on why the normally placid waters of Sharm el-Sheikh became host to a series of shark incidents over the past week that left one dead and four others severely injured, experts said the illegal dumping of animal carcasses by cargo boats in nearby waters may have caused a behavioural change in sharks, which rarely become aggressive towards humans.

The sudden presence of raw meat in the Red Sea came against a backdrop of long-term overfishing, which depletes the sharks' natural prey, and of unthinking swimmers and snorkellers trying to feed scraps to marine life – a practice that is prohibited as it encourages sharks to approach humans and view them as a source of food. Unusually high temperatures around southern Sinai may also have encouraged sharks to move into shallower waters, creating the ideal conditions for a tragic encounter with holidaymakers enjoying the sea.

"This should be a reminder that the ocean is the shark's natural habitat and that we are visitors there," said Hossam El-Hamalawy, a certified Red Sea rescue diver. "When we begin messing with the inhabitants' behavioural patterns, when we begin messing with their environment, then the consequences can be serious."

The investigation into the attacks, which have left the famous Sharm beaches emptied of tourists at the height of the holiday season, is being conducted by three international shark experts in co-operation with the Egyptian authorities. Scientists stressed today that research into what caused the incidents continues and that they are yet to reach any conclusions, although they are convinced that at least two species of shark – the mako and the oceanic whitetip – were involved.

In Egypt, there was doubt about whether the expert team's high-profile inquiries were achieving anything. "Why did they need to import all these specialists merely to come up with the same explanations that we all had from day one?" asked one dive centre owner, who preferred to remain anonymous.

"I'm surprised the government has just woken up and discovered this overnight – the problem of the tourism industry damaging the ecology of the Red Sea has been going on for three decades, and yet nothing has been done about it," added El-Hamalawy.

Egypt's ministry of tourism confirmed today that it would be offering $50,000 (£31,750) compensation to each of the Russian tourists injured in last week's attacks.

NO SALVATION FROM THIS ARMY

Just one more reason to ignore the bell ringers this year...

From rightwingwatch.org

Salvation Army In Canada Bans Distribution of Non-Christian Toys

Submitted by Kyle on December 9, 2010 - 9:06am

As you are undoubtedly aware, the Religious Right has long denounced the Harry Potter series asdangerous and anti-Christian and everyone from James Dobson to Cindy Jacobs to Concerned Women for America has warned parents to keep their children away from it.

Now it looks like the Salvation Army in Canada is taking such warnings to heart and had decided that it will not distribute any Harry Potter, Twilight, or other anti-Christian toys to needy children this year:

Twilight books, movies and toys might be among the hottest gifts of the season, but one popular charity won't be giving those donated items to needy children.
Also on the do-not-distribute list for the Salvation Army: Anything to do with Harry Potter, sorcery or warlocks.
It's not that toys aren't needed, a spokeswoman said, rather some items aren't in step with the Christian aid organization's principles.
"There are just certain items that parents have asked not be included in the gift bags," said Capt. Pam Goodyear.
"Items that have come to my attention include the Twilight series and we also don't give out toy guns."
...
Goodyear said the decision to not distribute such toys is simple.
"The Salvation Army doesn't support witchcraft, witchery and black magic," she said.
"That's not a ban, it's our stand."

CHILEAN SECURITY FORCES OPEN FIRE ON INDIGENOUS ISLANDERS

From TVNZ.com

Indigenous islanders just want what belongs to them. As usual, the STATE opens fire in response.

Calls for calm in violence-hit Easter Island

There are calls for calm on Easter Island after Chilean security forces opened fire on indigenous land protesters, who have been occupying a government official's house for months.

Three islanders and one policeman were evacuated to mainland Chile for treatment following the violence, while another 20 were injured.

Chilean forces had gone to a property on the Polynesian island to evict 10 people who had been occupying the house since ousting the government official from it in September.

They opened fire after being surrounded by rock-throwing protesters.

The protesters, who are the descendants of the original Polynesian inhabitants of the island, claim 13 properties on the island, including one hotel, were all illegally taken from their families decades ago and are demanding their return.

Last month, a Court of Appeal ruled they had a legitimate claim to ancestral ownership but the island tribunal decided to issue eviction notices anyway.

Speaking to ONE News on the Chilean mainland, the governor of the seaport city of Valparaiso, Raul Celis, said that the situation on Easter Island was complicated.

"The situation, I would not say it's serious, but complicated. There was an eviction and buildings had been occupied illegally for several months," he said.

The Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) has now intervened, urging all parties to seek a peaceful outcome. It says it is concerned for the indigenous people of the island."Obviously there isn't a situation of complete normality on Easter Island."

"We are concerned about the outcome because we have not received any more news. I think there is a media clampdown on Rapanui as of now," PCC spokesperson Fe'iloakitau Tevi said.

The council has also asked the Red Cross for help in a bid to prevent violence escalating further.

Easter Island, also called Rapanui, is one of the most isolated inhabited islands in the world and a territory of Chile.

The tiny island is famous for more than 800 moai or statues carved by the original Polynesian inhabitants

PRISONERS ON STIKE

In an incredibly historic action, black, brown and white prisoners in the dreadful prison system of the state of Georgia have gone on a one day strike. You can be of some help or at least express your support. Read the article below from Firedoglake.

You can still make that call.

GA Prison Inmates Stage Historic 1-Day Peaceful Strike

By: Bruce Dixon Thursday December 9, 2010 10:57 am

In an action which is unprecedented on several levels, black, brown and white inmates of Georgia’s notorious state prison system are standing together for a historic one day peaceful strike today, during which they are remaining in their cells, refusing work and other assignments and activities. This is a groundbreaking event not only because inmates are standing up for themselves and their own human rughts, but because prisoners are setting an example by reaching across racial boundaries which, in prisons, have historically been used to pit oppressed communities against each other. PRESS RELEASE BELOW THE FOLD

The action is taking place today in at least half a dozen of Georgia’s more than one hundred state prisons, correctional facilities, work camps, county prisons and other correctional facilities. We have unconfirmed reports that authorities at Macon State prison have aggressively responded to the strike by sending tactical squads in to rough up and menace inmates.

Outside calls from concerned citizens and news media will tend to stay the hand of prison authorities who may tend to react with reckless and brutal aggression. So calls to the warden’s office of the following Georgia State Prisons expressing concern for the welfare of the prisoners during this and the next few days are welcome.

Macon State Prison is 978-472-3900.	Hays State Prison is at (706) 857-0400
Telfair State prison is 229-868-7721	Baldwin State Prison is at (478) 445- 5218
Valdosta State Prison is 229-333-7900	Smith State Prison is at (912) 654-5000
The Georgia Department of Corrections is at http://www.dcor.state.ga.us and their phone number is 478-992-5246

This is all the news we have for now, more coming.

One in every thirteen adults in the state of Georgia is in prison, on parole or probation or some form of court or correctional supervision.

*********************************

Press Release

BIGGEST PRISONER STRIKE IN U.S. HISTORY

Thousands of Georgia Prisoners to Stage Peaceful Protest

December 8, 2010… Atlanta, Georgia

Contacts: Elaine Brown, 404-542-1211, sistaelaine@gmail.com;Valerie Porter, 229-931-5348,lashan123@att.net; Faye Sanders, 478-550-7046

Tomorrow morning, December 9, 2010, thousands of Georgia prisoners will refuse to work, stop all other activities and remain in their cells in a peaceful, one-day protest for their human rights. The December 9 Strike is projected to be the biggest prisoner protest in the history of the United States.

These thousands of men, from Baldwin, Hancock, Hays, Macon, Smith and Telfair State Prisons, among others, state they are striking to press the Georgia Department of Corrections (“DOC”) to stop treating them like animals and slaves and institute programs that address their basic human rights. They have set forth the following demands:

A LIVING WAGE FOR WORK: In violation of the 13^th Amendment to the Constitution prohibiting slavery and involuntary servitude, the DOC demands prisoners work for free.
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: For the great majority of prisoners, the DOC denies all opportunities for education beyond the GED, despite the benefit to both prisoners and society.
DECENT HEALTH CARE: In violation of the 8^th Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments, the DOC denies adequate medical care to prisoners, charges excessive fees for the most minimal care and is responsible for extraordinary pain and suffering.
AN END TO CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENTS: In further violation of the 8^th Amendment, the DOC is responsible for cruel prisoner punishments for minor infractions of rules.
DECENT LIVING CONDITIONS: Georgia prisoners are confined in over-crowded, substandard conditions, with little heat in winter and oppressive heat in summer.
NUTRITIONAL MEALS: Vegetables and fruit are in short supply in DOC facilities while starches and fatty foods are plentiful.
VOCATIONAL AND SELF-IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES: The DOC has stripped its facilities of all opportunities for skills training, self-improvement and proper exercise.
ACCESS TO FAMILIES: The DOC has disconnected thousands of prisoners from their families by imposing excessive telephone charges and innumerable barriers to visitation.
JUST PAROLE DECISIONS: The Parole Board capriciously and regularly denies parole to the majority of prisoners despite evidence of eligibility.

Prisoner leaders issued the following call: “No more slavery. Injustice in one place is injustice to all. Inform your family to support our cause. Lock down for liberty!”

Contacts: Elaine Brown, 404-542-1211, ;Valerie Porter, 229-931-5348, lashan123@att.net; FayeSanders, 478-550-7046sistaelaine@gmail.com